That very moment, the servant brought out some ink and paper.
Michael said to Zayn with a smile on his face, "Mr. Cross, come, let me see how good your skills are."
Zayn glanced at Nathan casually, then smiled at Michael and said, "Sure."
After that, he grabbed a brush, dipped it in ink, and started writing.
With the crowd in front of him, he wrote an excerpt from the Iliad. 'Let me not die ingloriously and without a struggle, but let me first do something great that shall be told among men hereafter.'
The crowd applauded his penmanship after he finished writing and one of them shouted, "Beautiful!"
Michael's eyes lit up when he read the bold line of words written by Zayn.
Although the quote wasn't quite suitable for birthdays, Michael thought that Zayn was complimenting his son.
After all, his son was Zach Hill, commander-in-chief of the South.
Michael was almost certain that Zayn showed up at his birthday out of respect for Zach.
So he wasn't alarmed when he saw what Zayn had written.
However, when Nathan read the quote, he let out a slight grin.
He knew deep inside that the quote was meant for him.
Zayn was basically telling him through his calligraphy: I've killed so many people that the blood on my sword is still dripping. Killing you is nothing!
Sure enough, Zayn looked straight at Nathan with a murderous look in his eyes after he finished writing.
With a slight grin, Nathan stood up and said calmly, "Before I came, I heard that General Hill instructed everyone not to bring any presents. Therefore, I did not
prepare any gifts. Since there are ink and paper here, I've decided to showcase my calligraphy skills too and give it to Michael as his birthday present."
Upon hearing these words, Michael answered Nathan in curiosity, "Young fellow, since you know calligraphy as well, if you're up for it, please show us your skills!"
Without any hesitation, Nathan picked up the calligraphy brush and started writing.
Stroke after stroke, he wrote finely and delicately.
His font was elegant yet sharp as he wrote down two lines of words.
"Brilliant!" the crowd exclaimed as they applauded.
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